#Genie Twilight

[idreamoftwilightsparkleroleplay]

Solar and twilight: hello genie twilight

Genie Twilight: Why hello ther- wha!

She's taken a bit aback by the 2-headed pony before her.

Genie Twilight: Well, I'm no stranger to meeting other me's... and I've seen my fair share of conjoinment. Just pardon if I didn't expect to see somepony like the two of you, heh heh... ^^'

[jokingluna]

[raviosrupees]

My parent rates LU Link's based on first impressions

[warning foul language, mention of alcohol, and my parents very negative impression of Wars !!! note this is my parents impression based off of the LU concept sketches + descriptions. a lot of em aren't accurate]

TIME

Very God of War, Kratos. PTSD Link.

when all the others are hanging out he's in the cups. He fought the moon? Sounds about right. Everyone else is talking and goofing off and he's got the thousand yard stare.

No one talks about how he cant get a full nights sleep. Please let him nap. Maybe let the owl take a nap too.

*stares at him for a very long time, before taking a sip of mimosa*

TWILIGHT

blond hiccup [httyd] very viking. Humble? Hiccup. Animal whisperer? Does he have a dragon? he turns in to a wolf? good for hiccup. getting over a complicated relationship? ...... h-

OH HE HAS GOATS? I love goats! Love this guy.

WARRIORS

Ah, douchy paladin! Yeah he's got the hip flex, he knows he's the shit. Very prideful? Of course you are. Leader type? Women problems? Not surprised. [said they most wanted to punch this one]

"This one writes himself. On Reddit forums"

FOUR [their 3rd fav]

"eeny meeny hippy genie" They've got the weird flowy scarf hat, they're super tiny! Dwarf.. chaos gremlin-- No that's a changeling! I don't think that's actually a Link, I think they faked their way in. Not that I blame them, its a pretty cool crew to be a part of. Spy for the fae realm.

WILD

5th grade school photo link. He's really excited for his first day of school and has a planner for all of his classes.

Good at navigation? Kudos for being a good boy scout.

Her 2nd favorite.

WILD

"Legolas Link" he likes to run on snow, flip his hair back + forth and shit talk dwarves [changeling doesn't like that]

"takes any questioning of his princess too personally? Why are they questioning his princess in the first place? *squints* Why is he so upset? Feel like maybe we need some codependency therapy-

IDENTITY CRISIS DUE TO MEMORY LOSS???? oh no, there we go, the therapy- INSECURE? THE ONLY ONE THAT FAILED? Dude, I think douchy paladin needs to take him to therapy-, maybe it'll convince him to get some too.

Proceeds to go into a rant about his sheikah tech being called weird magic: "Why are they calling his magic weird? That's rude ! They need to have more open minds, no wonder he's insecure! He just needs to feel confident and supported in his new environment and they're not being very supportive right now!"

*orders another mimosa*

LEGEND [their favorite]

"We've got stoner wizard link..." "Which one?" "He's wearing red, and like a fancy staff with a ball at the end for walloping on people who say he's not a real wizard" He just smacks em and says duh yes I am, but usually he doesn't bother with it bc he's too chill.

He's the Millenial of the linked universe. "Chooses not to be a leader type? 'Nope, Im good, just here for a paycheck not a promotion. Some PTO would be nice. Another adventure? He'd rather start a commune"

"Seems unaffected by his adventures?" Uhh he is though. He's just delusional about it now.

HYRULE

Classic link [true] silent generation, nobody acknowledges him. "just happy to be included," mistaken as a hobbit.

"He's actually a traveler, never stays in one place" "Ah so post adventure Bilbo baggins, who wants to see mountains again."

*starts singing "the road goes ever on and on"*

SKY

Foppy link. Fabulous haircut, cape swooped over one shoulder with the gorgeous coloring, contrasting belt-- he knows color schemes way too well, he could be in project runway.

"Not the leader type? Sure he's too busy worrying about fabric swatches. Views the master sword as a blessing? Yeah, I bet he does."

Very confidently decided his Zelda is a beard.

[theknucklehead]

[i-dream-of-twilight-sparkle]

Formal Announcement of ending I Dream of Twilight Sparkle

Hello everyone, I am announcing that today. I am closing I Dream of Twilight Sparkle after 12 years. And unfortunately canceling that final story I alluded to before. Because each time I tried to start it, I just couldn't find the motivation or got too distracted by something else.

I think after 12 years my creative juices when it comes to ponies has come to an end. I think it's fair to say I've done enough. As just about every character I wanted to get a form of closure got it. Both Secrets of the Dragon's Tear and Earnest Empathetic Change I think alone already kinda serve as good finale stories in the closing years.

The story I had in mind to close things off would have simply been a timeskip of more than 1000 years where Twilight and Starlight have kept the peace. And IDOTS' versions of the G5 Mane 6 just being part of one of many, many, generations that got to flourish under Twilight and Starlight's rule. The G5 Mane 6 were going to be invited to Canterlot's castle. And got to personally speak with Twilight, Starlight, and the spirits of the rest of the G4 Mane 6, Sunset Shimmer, and Queen Chrysalis.

Sunny Starscout and the rest would then be sent on her way to Saddle Arabia where she'd get the opportunity to be asked if she'd like to have the honor of being the next Equestrian Genie after Twilight. The story would end on it being open ended on whether Sunny would accept or not. Cause regardless of how it went, I have no intention of moving on to a I Dream of Sunny Starscout blog or anything like that. So it'd be up to someone else if they wanted to pick up the mantle to start their own Genie Sunny story.

Kinda sucks that I'm canceling a G5 related thing as well when Hasbro itself is canceling G5 plans what with Tell Your Tale ending very soon. As while I will not lie, G5 never grabbed me the way G4 did. But I think the characters had potential. And if nothing else, Misty Brightdawn was perhaps the best thing to come out of G5 overall.

But back to I Dream of Twilight Sparkle. I've had a lot of fun with this blog and met many friends thanks to keeping this up for so long. Some I haven't seen or spoke to in years and may never see again but still appreciate the time I had with them, and ones I still maintain friendships with to this day.

I'm not sure I could ever say enough words for everything that's happened in the 12 years I was running the blog. But I think it's the right time to have it all come to an end. I have nothing more in mind for the universe of Genie Twilight that I really want to cover. I also formally canceled Geniequestria not too long ago. It almost feels like I'm leaving the fandom entirely. But I still plan on hanging around. There's just nothing I have in mind that's pony related from a creative sense.

So thank you to every follower, asker, and friend I've ever made through this blog. I will keep the ask button open on IDOTS for a good while in case there's people who feel obligated to say their goodbyes or any other kind of message. I may even answer them here, if they have a form of question or feature them anyway if it's a touching sort of message.

As for what I'm moving on to, my creative efforts are focused entirely on Cosmic Heart Zone. Which is a Sonic-themed blog about my favorite Sonic character Tails and Cosmo the Seedrian (A character that was Sonic X only in official continuities, but in this case an AU where she was involved in many of the main games). So if you're a Sonic fan, there's at least something you can still follow me for, as I have some exciting things in mind for this.

Otherwise I'll still have my mod blog if you want to talk with me about any subject that doesn't relate to I Dream of Twilight Sparkle or any of my other blogs.

It's been a long 12 years, feels so much longer than that almost. Once again thanks for every follower, ask, and interaction I've ever had from going on this long.

It becomes hard to let go of something you've ran even as just a hobby for over a decade. But I think now's a good time to do so now. Thank you all for the memories.

[sweetiepotatofry]

If I had a genie one of my wishes would be for mlp g5 to be the exact same, except, there is visibly a mare in both the sun and moon. With no further explanation.

[thelinnmiser]

Yeah, I Know Nobody Is Gonna Like This Since It's Pooh's Adventures & Crap But I Promise That I'm Gonna Suffer With Making My 1st EVER Pooh's Adventures Video.

[tinydancerfreelancersblog]

*Singing "The Twilight Zone" theme song*

[eviexxeditz]

genie in a bottle 🧞🧞‍♀️ (•alexa demie edit•)

this is an old edit I discovered so u can see my improvement lmao - also my watermark isn’t here❕💋 so pls don’t steal this OR ELSE🫵📸

[lucienweekofficial]

🕯️ Happy Spooky Season! We have a very special, two-part Lucien Week Ask Game for you! Pull a question out of the Cauldron and send your mutuals a Halloween Edition question — then scroll down to find even more options to haunt them with…

Thank you to the Elucien Week mods for inspiring us with the ask game idea!

🎃 HALLOWEEN EDITION 🎃

🍿 || What would Lucien’s favorite scary movie be and why?

🩸 || “This is the skin of a killer”, or “You smell like a wet dog?” Who would Lucien be in a Twilight AU?

👻 || How would Lucien handle being the main character in a horror movie? Would he investigate the haunted manor? Become best friends with the ghost?

🧞‍♂️ || A genie grants Lucien three wishes, but they cannot be any of the following: money, death, and love. What does he wish for?

🦹 || What would be Lucien’s go-to Halloween costume?

🍬 TRICK OR TREAT! 🍬Now ask some of the following…

💭 || What is your favorite Lucien headcanon and why?

📖 || Share your favorite Lucien quote!

🚢 || What is your favorite Lucien ship and why?

☕️ || What do you think would be Lucien’s go-to coffee order?

📝 || Share a snippet of your Lucien Week WIP!

😇 || What is the best quality that Lucien shares with you?

😈 || What is the worst quality that Lucien shares with you?

🎵 || Share a song that reminds you of Lucien!

🎩 || Lucien the Gentleman, or Lucien the Rake? Which version of our fox-boy do you prefer?

🎨 || Share your favorite Lucien fanart(s)!

🖊️ || Share your favorite Lucien fic(s)!

👀 ||| How excited are you for Lucien Week 2024?

💃 || Share your Lucien Week plans!

🌙 || If I offer you the moon on a string, will you give me a kiss, too?

[idreamoftwilightsparkleroleplay]

Question! Are there any sort of wishes that usually have unintended or unforeseen consequences?

Genie Twilight: As long as I'm in the right mind, no. I always think things through if there's a chance something could go wrong with the wish.

The wish is also always to my interpretation, so even if somepony words a wish that would sound like it'd have a consequence say...

"I wish you'd make me a sandwich" I make sure to interpret that they just want a sandwich. Not be TURNED INTO a sandwich.

...Although, food wishes aren't a good idea for me anyhow. No matter what happens, any food made by my magic makes the food taste dull compared to properly made food.

[murfeelee]

TS3 vs TS4 Features - Supernatural

I saw @moonbiscuitsims' comment here about how EA added "way more features" in their TS4 occult packs, and I wanted to talk about it in depth, cuz that's a misleading statement. Y'all know TS4's my trigger.

Cuz yes, on paper, EA offers a LOT of stuff in TS4 packs. But the saying goes: as broad as an ocean and as deep as a puddle. 😬 QUALITY, versus QUANTITY, which is crucial for replayability, customization, variability, and ultimate longevity. And another thing is the TIMEFRAME that that content was released. Sure, if it takes you 10 years to develop/dripfeed your frikkin game, ofc you can add more content over more packs; than if you'd just stuck to ONE dedicated pack, developed it in 1-2 years, and given people arguably BETTER, if not MORE content.

My gut reaction's to say EA had BETTER be offering more content! 😤 Not even to justify the ridiculous pricetag or anything, but for the simple fact that TS4's supposed to be NEXT GEN. It's SUPPOSED to be bigger & better than everything that came before it. Why are we sitting here for 10 years with TS4 if it ain't gonna increase ANYTHING but my rising blood pressure & trust issues?!

So Imma just examine TS3 SN in comparison with TS4's packs, and give my take on what's been going on, from 2012 (SN EP) to now.

Missing Features: TS4 Fairies

A fairy was the very first sim I ever made in TS3 back in 2009 (my avatar sim, Sakura). Watching the SN announcement trailer for the first time dang near made me cry. TS4 could never; moving on.

Missing Features: TS4 Zombies & Toadsims

TS4 Tragic Clowns are a W for the apple juggling & costume. I think EA was lazy by slacking on the clown just cuz he's already dead in Sunset Valley; and I guess they don't expect players to resurrect his ghost. SN EP did nothing to actually improve/expand him, just creating the alchemy Clown Potion; I guess to better integrate fishing the Clownfish into the lore.

TS4 Vampires GP (2017)

This is an easy one. I've said since TS3 Late Night EP (2010) that TS3's vampires are utter dogtrash, and the SN EP did eff all to patch/improve them, and I will die on that hill (until someone figures out how to give convert TS4's functional coffins & vampire fights & special FX). Compared to every other occult, I have more mods installed just to try to fix how effing busted & stupid vamps are; and these sparkling Twilight dumb AF bloodsuckers STILL get on my dang nerves.

IMO, TS4 Vampires is hands down the best pack EA ever made for TS4. 10/10, the attention they put in that pack outclasses darn near everything else they did until TS4 Seasons. Undisputed W, yes. 👏

TS4 Realm of Magic GP (2019)

Disputed W. I gave it an 8/10 at BEST, cuz magic/fantasy's a win, but I am disappointed. If this had been a home run for EA, I'd've shut my dang mouth, ISTG. But alas. I went on a long AF tirade against RoM when I realized that a lot of its so-called "new" features were things we could already do in TS4, with a flashy coat of paint--let alone things TS3 & the SN EP did, and better. Some things I didn't mention though:

Muggles who ask spellcasters how to do magic are sent on a fetch quest for Magic Motes, which is EXACTLY what the ITF EP Time Traveler occult Emit Revelart makes normies do to, finding Power Cells to learn how to use the Time Portal.

The Witch's perks/ranks system works just like the Vampires one, so kudos to EA for not fixing something that ain't broke I guess.

The Spells: At MTS I actually broke down what each of TS4's spellcasters do that's largely nothing sims couldn't do in TS3, even before SN came out (via SHT Genies or SSNS Aliens, or the Store).

TS3 Witches (let alone other lifestates) can do most of this either through alchemy or inherited features from older TS3 packs. This was a huge RoM dealbreaker for me, as I'd been hoping for WAY more innovative features in TS4's spells--the whole point of Spellcasters--than just an elaborate set of cheats. TS3's Witch's main features are fewer, but far more cohesive, IMO. (Granted, NONE of the packs holds a single candle to the GOAT that is TS1's Makin Magic, which had WAY more features than TS2, TS3 & TS4; and was CHEAPER. But I digress.)

There's no unique features with TS3/TS4 wands; they act the same way; the effects are just different, and TBH I'm not a fan of either--I wish wand/magic FXs could be modded in different colors at least (like BLACK 😈). But I DO like that in TS4 they can duel for rewards.

TS4 brooms do EFF ALL in a closed world; EA made them exactly they way they were in TS2, with zero innovation. (IIRC kids can't even use them--EA's hatred for kids & elders ALMOST matches MY hatred of EA.)

IMO beekeeping doesn't count, cuz TS3 included it as a small feature for alchemy ingredients in the SN EP, while TS4 integrated it far better in SSNS to work with gardening, which is genius.

Speaking of SSNS, there's the Weather Stone that only appears if you have both SN & SSNS, so occults can conjure magical weather effects over the whole world. (I'll talk about the best perk under Crystals SP.)

Familiars are the certified W for me with RoM. They're the best & most unique & most well-thought out & feature of the GP, IMO. ❤️

Extra TS4 features I think are supremely cool are spellcasters' books floating whenever they read anything. And their cauldrons have much cooler animations, and I'm so jealous that y'all can cook food in them; EA should've added that to the Store Cauldron, although I guess I understand why they didn't in the SN EP Alchemy Cauldron.

A lot of RoM's features are wrapped around Glimmerbrook. Access to Glimmerbrook comes with the Glimmer Stone key--and I WOULD use that as a segue into the Crystals SP, but I'll hold off. I already vented about Glimmerbrook in my Werewolves GP rant--but I'll get to that in a minute, too. The bigger issue is what even constitutes a TS4 "world"--those non-customizeable tiny AF clusters of tiny AF lots and huge swaths of decorative set dressing--let alone the Diagon Alley ripoff EA loves promoting like I was born yesterday and never saw Harry Potter. GORGEOUS realm, of course, like many EA worlds are. But they're largely just set-dressing, which irritates me to no end.

TS4 Paranormal SP (2021)

I've ranted & raved about Paranormal before: 7/10 at best.

TS4 Seances with the crystal ball work very differently from TS3's Soothsayer's Crystal Ball, which wasn't about banishing ghosts, but improving progression for SN's Witches & Fortune Telling (career). Fortune Telling's NOT a ghostly job, although the boho aesthetic carried over to TS4 Paranormal. (On top of the fact that they promised this whole NOLA Voodoo vibe, but delivered ZERO cultural accurate features reflecting ANYTHING from Haitian Voodoo, wtf? It's all hippie boho New Age BS--why TF does the tutorial ghost look more like Johnny Depp and less like Dr. Facilier, I ask you, EA.) Granted, some of the interactive objects are nice, like the calming dollbaby & magic candles to purify lots--kinda like TS3 incense. But again: 1-trick ponies. Yes, the animations look great, but crystal balls are typically for divination, asking spirits about the past/present/future, not removing haunting poltergeists, so I don't really get it. Stylish & gorgeous! But GENERIC AF substance-wise.

IMO, TS4's Ghosts are an L across the board; all the way from the base game--that bafflingly launched in 2014 WITHOUT ghosts until they were patched in a whole month later after everyone rose a stink (IIRC TS4 kids can't be ghosts!?)--to present. EA's been over/course-correcting from that gaffe ever since, with like double the amount of Death types than TS3. I DO NOT like how TS4 ghosts colors are tied to Eeemotionnsss~! (more like they're a sentient Plumbbob). TBF, kudos to TS4's smoky cloudy effect when ghosts appear. But the lack of unique deaths & ghost types in RoM (aside from Spellcaster Overload & the Night Wraith) made me roll my eyes, as SN EP's ghost types are some of my faves (ITF & SHT are also my top 3).

IIRC it was the SN patch that unlocked all types in (basegame?) CAS to make playable Ghosts. SN's Philosopher's Stone allows sims to summon new playable Ghosts (and ofc allows for transmutating cheap objects into gold ingots--more on that later), or it can just kill you and make YOU the new ghost, LOL.

But as for features, sure, TS4 ghosts have more interactions--though they're all pretty, rather than scary (vs TS2 ghosts, which were SCARY). TS4 ghosts lost the HORROR to just be silly/goofy or just CUTESY--especially the little spectres from Paranormal.

Speaking of horror, I can't talk about ghosts w/out bringing up TS3's AMB EP, cuz the Ghost Hunter (profession) is the real parallel with TS4's Paranormal Investigator (freelancer). In TS3, they actually stuck to their promised main premise (Ghostbusters). Overall, TS4 Seances are nowhere near as fluid as TS3 ghostbusting. In TS3 you can run all over the world using gidgets-gadgets to detect/fight ghosts & sprites, not just inside haunted houses, but anywhere they happen to spawn (ofc inc. graveyards). You're not just locked to a lot/house the player already knows is haunted (cuz you just toggle Haunted Lot to trigger the feature--SN's Ghost Gnome object isn't exactly the same, but it does spawn hauntings on the lots you put them in). ANY TS3 indoor/outdoor residential/community lot can randomly get haunted during a Ghost Hunter's shift; and you never know which one it'll be, or what kind of shenanigans will happen--EVIL ghost or just some sprites--which skyrockets replayability & keeps things fresh & interesting.

Functionally, Paranormal had no right to be that dang good for a Stuff Pack. That was a Game Pack; IDKY EA insists otherwise; esp. when it offered more & better things than some actual GPs. I'm confused. However, a serious problem TS4 has is that it gameifies everything to the point that TS4's numerous features lose their spontaneity, and just become rote--BORING. The ectoplasm everywhere just becomes another mess in your (haunted) house you have to clean--CHORES. On top of me not liking TS4 ghosts' look & vibe (and I HATE TS4's Bonehilda). Quality over quantity, EA!

TS4 Werewolves GP (2022)

Speaking of ghosts, waaaay back in 2020 I told the spirits precisely what I wanted from a potential Werewolf dedicated TS4 pack. Did they listen? HAYUL NAW. So in 2022 I said everything I had to say about the Werewolves GP, and accepted the fact that EA's INEPT.

Do TS4's wolves have MORE features than TS3? YES ofc (even in 2012 everyone complained that Witches & Faeries got the lion's share & Werewolves got shafted--they're basically glorified Familiars for Witches/Alchemist to find collectibles--more on that below). But was most of it GOOD features though? Debatable! I LOATHE the 2 wolf packs, which was what I'd most looked forward to; plus the whole world's aesthetic was ugly homeless-grunge, without a single bit of creativity or originality--only EA could make monsters as terrifying as werewolves effing cartoony hipster squatters. 🤦 7/10 at best.

TS4 Crystals SP (2024)

These crystals are ugly, EA. Which is weird, cuz the basegame TS4 gems & esp. space rocks are GORGEOUS. I have no idea which vision-impaired dev at EAxis thought these nasty looking opaque poorly-painted rocks were pretty.

Features-wise, granted, having TS4's bonafide Gemology skill from the Crystals SP's nice, instead of TS3's basegame hidden Collector skill. But the functioanlity's largely the same: cut more, unlock more (which I prefer to cheat my way through--TS3 thinks I have time for all this gameplay, LOL). (Not to mention all the extra features TS3's Aliens, Simbots & Plumbbots have when interacting with gems, space rocks, or metals.) TS4 only got 10 gem cuts for 27 crystals (=270), (+25 metals); compared to TS3's 16 gem cuts for 28 gems (=448), (+16 metals with their own separate ingots). Of TS4's 10 cuts, the Skull Cut is the ONLY one I think looks better (ignoring the atrociously flat textures ofc) than TS3's (which TS4 copy/pasted--no agates, no crystal ball, wtf).

The Garden Gnome cut isn't unique to TS4, as TS3 has several craftable (glass-only) Garden Gnome cut from the Glassblowing Machine (more on that soon).

The only TS3 gem that genuinely affects sims is radioactive Tiberium from the WA EP, so more features is definitely a plus. The best addition is TS4's Charging Grid feature--I LOVE that TS4 crystals can be imbued with magic energy--it's like TS3's Store Crystal Tree, ITF EP's magic crystal plants & the SN EP Mood Lamp all rolled into one. @greenplumbboblover's WIP Interests & Hobbies mod brainstormed integrating that functionality that back in 2020.

The functionality of the TS3 SN EP Gem Cutter & the TS4 Crystal Tree are similar, though ofc the tree's wallet & eco-friendly; and it's a plant, not a hunk of machinery, so it naturally has that going for it.

There's also the SN-SSNS Weather Stone, which gives werewolves the ability to summon a Hunter's Storm, raining a hail of gems, rocks & metals over the whole world for easy loot farming. (The best perk, though my fave is the Faeries' Reviving Sprinkle for gardening.)

Aside from SN, TS3's real equivalent is actually the Prism Art Studio Venue's Artisan skill. Cuz the REAL seller's the jewellery-making. There's ~100 CAS items in Crystals SP (plus 30+ regular Build/Buy mode objects). At $10, the Crystals SP is a steal, at least when compared to the BONKERS $20 tag on TS3's Prism Art Studio at the Store (2014). IIRC the Glassblowing Machine newly added 16 craftable CAS items & 13 craftable glass objects (as SN already gave us the Gem-Cutting Machine & AMB already gave us the Widgets work station); and 8 Build/Buy objects (inc. the goated L-shaped "spiral" stairs). It also added 5 craftable Perfumes for sims to use.

So while the Crystals SP added NICE features, I wouldn't say they added MORE features. Rather, they added more content: Quantity. But as for Quality, I think TS3 beats it out--the Prism Studio's a effing ripoff, but AFAIK it added features TS4 still doesn't have yet (craftable glassblowing & perfumes, spiral stairs); and the objects it did add are pretty nifty.

Timeframe-wise, we got the 2014 Prism Art Studio's Glassblower 2 years after the SN EP's Gem-Cutter; 5 years after the 2009 basegame. Compared to TS4's wait for the Crystals SP 2 years after Werewolves, 3 after Paranormal, 5 after RoM; and a whopping DECADE after the basegame launched in 2014. Wtf, EA?

Still, I'd say the Crystal SP's a 7/10 (there's not enough gem cuts, the gems textures are ugly, and most of the features were lifted from things TS3 had innovated 10+ years earlier).

TL;DR

Quantity =/= Quality.

EA's been taking way too long releasing packs to have the nerve to present debatable content--it should be goated releases EVERY time; esp. since everyone agrees TS4 is easier to create content for, so much smaller in scale/scope, and with an infinitely larger budget & fanbase than The Sims franchise ever had. There's zero excuse for EAxis' mediocrity, when TS3 was churning out EPs like it's life depended on it: SHT, SN, and SSNS all came out the SAME EFFING YEAR. 2012 was LIT.

EA, you suck.

[artist-issues]

Hi! How do you think the Aladdin live action remake compares to the animated film? I'm interested to hear criticisms but I also found it to be one of the more fun-to-watch remakes.

Okay

Here’s the thing

This is not your fault. I work with students on the weekends and several of them from different walks of life and grades have told me that they like the Live Action Aladdin better than the original and not just that they like it, they love it, for some of them it’s their favorite. Movie.

And I just feel like I’m living in the Twilight Zone. So any overzealousness in responding to this ask is not directed at you, I think you have good taste and a good head on your shoulders.

But their favorite? Their favorite movie? LA Aladdin is so bad. Objectively. Like, from a movie-making standpoint, if you didn’t even compare it to the original. I’m thinking, pacing-wise, first and foremost. Why does it feel like “One Jump” was so poorly choreographed that the people in it couldn’t move in-time with the tempo, so the editor had to fast forward their motions to fit the lyrics? Didn’t even try to cover that up? Why does all the costumes look like costumes, like we’re in a really elaborate high-budget high school production?

Secondly, acting. The guy who played Aladdin at no point convinced me that he was in love with Jasmine, afraid for his life, or insecure. At no point. And those are all very important to the plot. And he’s the lead. Even Will Smith feels like he’s trying to put himself in the head of his character in high-emotion situations but he can’t quite get there. Feels forced. The bad CGI doesn’t help.

Thirdly, likability of characters.

LA Aladdin—the character—is handsome. And that’s it. Other than that, he’s a dipstick crossed with a complete jerk. He falls backward out of windows and fumbles around in front of girls and clings to a lie at the cost of his new best friend’s eternal freedom just because he starts to believe that lie, himself, and get a big head?

Genie is preachy, not funny. He has no believable stake in the game��because they removed all reference to him caring about his own freedom to make him seem more flawless. Why? Why did they do that? The original Genie gets sarcastic and even bratty, out of genuine hurt, when, after all he’s done for him, Aladdin turns back on his promise and refuses to set him free. Why does he act bratty and hurt? BECAUSE HE IS HURT. Because for ten thousand years that’s been his fondest dream, and because he started to think Aladdin was his real genuine friend, but in this all the emphasis is placed on painting Aladdin as a scummy punk who won’t listen to reason so that the new Genie and the girl-power Princess can look better by comparison.

So Genie can’t say, “after all, you’ve lied to everyone else, I was beginning to feel left out. If you’ll excuse me—Master.”

Because that would be him showing a lack of grace. Bitterness. Might make Genie, himself, look a little flawed—RELATABLE AND HUMAN, and it might underline the fact that he meant it when he said he wanted freedom. Oh, no, we can’t have that. Just have him say, all noble, “oh, you’re gonna drink from that cup. You’re breaking my heart.”

Please.

Who cares that Genie is set free when Genie didn’t seem to be all that trapped or broken-up about his captivity beforehand? Leave him in the lamp, he’s happy as a benevolent fairy godfather, doling out wisdom and one-liners for all eternity to ungrateful brats. 🙄 That’s how any competent audience member feels when they changed Genie’s characterization around.

And again, they made those changes so that Genie would look wiser and more gracious in that moment. Gee I wonder why they needed to make Genie seem more flawless this time around. I wonder what’s different about this Genie versus the original Genie.

And not only that, but they changed Jasmine’s character to make her more flawless and perfect, too. Because “women empowerment.” So now she’s not a real human girl who wants to be treated like a human being and get to be normal. No way, that’s too “simple naive girl” of her. We gotta make her strongggg and wiiiiise and a better leader than her father. Now she’s a political dreamer!

EUGH.

That’s not Jasmine. The whole point of the original Jasmine is that she wanted to be free, to be treated like a human, not a prized pet or a trophy, and she wanted a real friend. She never wanted to be Sultan. Never never never. She was the type of character who was trusting enough to assume a shopkeeper would happily give an apple away to a starving child—trusting enough to still love Prince Ali even though he turned out to be a liar not once but twice,—trusting enough to teach HIM TRUST.

Trust that he’s not going to be cast off just because he’s a street-rat! Trust that he can let other people know who he is, without having to be all money-and-status obsessed—

—no, listen, listen,

Aladdin’s whole character—and this movie is supposed to be about Aladdin—is that he’s insecure about who he is.

He thinks that because he’s poor and lives on the streets nobody will love him and he’ll always have problems that he’s trapped in. What does he think the solution to those problems are?

Wealth. Royalty.

And is that true? Are wealth and royalties also the guarantee of problems going away? No. But he’s never had those things before, so how would he know that?

I’ll tell you how.

Jasmine shows him.

When they’re in his hovel in the city, he is so excited to show her his view of the palace, and it’s the first thing that takes his eyes off of her for the scene—and she immediately turns away, dispirited, sits down, and sarcastically pops his daydream-bubble of how nice it must be to live in the palace. She is the reason his idea of having “no problems in the palace” stops being his dream. And they both bond over feeling trapped.

If Princess Jasmine wants to be Sultan, instead of wanting to be normal and free, then Aladdin is less able to connect with and relate to her. Their romance is less impactful. And she has less of an impact on him, on changing the way he sees the world. Because they go from “real people” to “strong-female-character and her supportive-male-trophy-boyfriend.”

And. Furthermore. He doesn’t even have to face the pressure of being offered the position of “Sultan.” Because Jasmine wants to be Sultan. So the LA movie just quietly eliminates the part where Sultan offers that to Aladdin, and fear and doubt cross over his face, and his big character flaw of insecurity makes a comeback. They just eliminate that part. So that Jasmine can want to be Sultan, and Aladdin can remain mildly supportive.

That is awful.

Because then, in this scene, which is the unraveling of all three main characters:

Aladdin has no real reason not to set Genie free. Absolutely none. They just came from a meeting where his future as a prince is guaranteed, and the villain seems to be gone. And, Aladdin feels no fear. Because he doesn’t have to be Sultan. He can just be a pampered prince on the arm of Jasmine. He clings to the lie—even though he starts this scene by saying it’s not a lie. He tells Genie he can’t do it on his own—but then he says he’s changed, “Aladdin is gone,” so which is it? Is he lying and he therefore needs Genie to keep it up, or is he no-longer-Aladdin so it’s not a lie and therefore he doesn’t need Genie anymore? Either way, his reasons for keeping Genie around are nonsensical. Cruel. Self-centered. Mind numbingly stupid. The scene is written terribly because they’re having to play TWISTER around the character motivations they’ve been slicing to pieces. So Aladdin is no longer sadly but relatably affirming that he’s still insecure, and needs the lie to keep the woman he loves: “Without you, I’m just Aladdin.” Instead, he’s a self-righteous double-talking punk. So that his girlfriend can look empowered and his genie can look wise.

Genie preaches and sermonizes and talks-down-to instead of honestly and emotionally reacting to the fact that his friend is betraying him and refusing the one dream he’s ever had. Will Smith’s face doesn’t move when he says “you’re breaking my heart.” He says it like an emotionally-manipulative school teacher, who knows the phrase sounds impactful but has no real vulnerable emotion to attach to the tone he says it in. It’s bad acting, is what I’m saying. And no wonder, because nothing about this is compelling. If Genie doesn’t care much about being free, then what’s the big deal, in this conversation? Why are they even arguing? Because Genie is disappointed in his new best friend’s moral fiber? None of that stopped him from helping Aladdin with the lie up until now. So now both characters look stupid and duplicitous, but Genie has the disadvantage of looking unsympathetic, too. Who cares if he’s free at the end of the movie—he “doesn’t care nothing about that wish.”

Jasmine isn’t in this scene but as I’ve said a hundred times, she cannot want to be Sultan. That cannot be her dream. Because if it is, 1) she’s not Jasmine. Shes not the girl who sics her tiger on princes and lets birds out of their palace cages and most importantly runs away. When they give her a new Girl Power dream, they have to go with the much-lamer version of the story where she’s not leaving behind everything she knew and boldly, if naively, trying to start a new life when she meets Aladdin. She doesn’t get to show that she’s willing to throw all that away and walk back into her gilded cage to save his life when her adventure gets him captured by palace guards. Instead, she’s just sneaking out to get to know her people for a quick little jaunt in the marketplace, and he’s caught later by himself in a less-emotionally impactful way like a bumbling cat-burglar in the palace, while she lies like we’re in a romcom. 2) she can’t want to be Sultan because it means she has an end-date to feeling “trapped” on the calendar, and that’s when her father dies and her dream automatically comes true. Regardless of who she’s married to. So there again, no reason to really connect with Aladdin. 3) Jasmine’s whole character is that she wants to be treated like a human. Being the Suktanwould be the exact opposite of that, for her. She’s already lived that. I’m so fed up with what they did to Jasmine. She was the perfect Princess for the lesson “the truth will set you free” and in this remake they made her the focal point of “positions of power will set you free.”

I’m not even going to go into Jafar.

This movie is terrible.

[i-dream-of-twilight-sparkle]

((Now that Earnest Empathetic Change is over, thought it'd be properly show what's the most obvious change (That I can show anyway, as unfortunately a look at the reformed Chrysalis is likely not within my spriting capabilities)

Now in the timeskip, Starlight has ascended into a princess after she successfully brings Chrysalis in good graces with Equestria. And is recognized as growing into Luna's role as the younger of the two royal sisters. I should of course make it clear that this is an adopted sisterhood. Much like how Celestia adopted Cadence as a niece. I am not saying Starlight is like a long lost sister-by-blood. The only way that makes sense is if Twilight Velvet had a fling with Firelight that ended up giving birth to Starlight (Or if Night Light had a fling with whoever Starlight's canon mother is and Firelight either adopted Starlight all the same or never knew Starlight was never his daughter by blood). Which might be interesting takes for a story to go for (If it hasn't already been done). But we've already well established that isn't the case here.

But a huge point that's been a theme of I Dream of Twilight Sparkle for very long. Is an adopted family relationship can be just as valid as one by blood. As that's how it's been with Twilight & Spike's mother-son relationship ever since the blog was only 1 year old.

Also, fun fact... I named the story Earnest Empathetic Change to play off of Magical Mystery Cure's acronym of MMC of simply rotating the (lower case) m into an E ;) ))

[theblueprincess590]

Duality of the Heart-An analysis of KH2

The number 2 is a major recurring motif in Kingdom Hearts 2 with the game introducing duel wielding keyblades, visiting all the disney worlds twice, Mulan’s dual identities, 2 magical genies in Agrabah, 2 Jafars, 2 “Santas”, The trinity Trio having 2 forms in Halloween Town, the Two Coliseums in Olympus, a past and present version of Disney Castle,  the game having 2 stories, 2 Soras, 2 Kairis, 2 Ansems, 2 Twilight Towns, Fighting Demyx Twice, Axel wielding twin Chakrams, Xigbar using two guns, Xemnas wielding 2 swords, and the final battle being a two on one fight. It would be a mistake however to assume the motif is just here because the game is called Kingdom Hearts 2, No the number 2 is a Major motif in KH2 because one of the game’s central themes is Duality. Kingdom Hearts 2 is a video game where in order for the character to win they must achieve a sense of duality whether it be between a Somebody and his Nobody or between Light and Darkness. 

The first example of someone successfully achieving duality in KH2 would be Mulan. At the beginning of her story Mulan is hiding both her true identity and femininity with the false identity of Ping. She failed to bring honor to her family through the role as a Noble woman so she attempts to restore her family’s honor by living out the role of a Soldier, of a man. The Land of Dragons is a world governed by rules and tradition placing everyone in a single role and rejecting those that do not fit them. By repressing her feminine traits and only relying on her masculine traits in order to fit a single role Mulan has created an internal imbalance within herself making her weaker, Shown though the gameplay with her weak stats and lack of Ability while disguised as a man. It is only after Mulan stops trying to fulfill the roles others have made for her and sheds the false identity of Ping that Mulan is able to achieve her true strength unlocking all her abilities and finally becoming Sora’s Peer in the form of their new limit Red Rocket. And it was thanks to the support of the Trinity Trio that Mulan was able to break free from the traditions of her world that were preventing from reaching true duality As they are outsides from her world and thus are not bond to the same rules allowing them to stand by her even when her country rejects her. By achieving true duality of the self Mulan was able to save both her country and her family's honor all while defying the traditions of her world that were keeping her from being happy. 

Antlantica is an interesting inverse of Land of Dragons where instead of being about an unbalanced world preventing someone from reaching duality it is instead about an Unbalanced person of power stopping his world from reaching duality.  Atlantica is world of 2, a world of the Sea and a world of land yet there is no unity between them. The 2 halves of the world are cut off from each other in total isolation. And this is because of King Triton, who uses his great power to enforce rules that keep them apart. King Triton is the authority figure of Atlantica and thus has the power to enforce his rules on the world but King Triton is a stubborn man with a heart entangled in his own biases and prejudices. Triton hates the surface world and its people so he keeps his kingdom cut off from it not only hurting the world but his daughter Aerial. So as if by the will of destiny Aerial has fallen in love with a human from the surface world, the two of them meant to create a bridge between their homes  that will restore their world’s duality. But Triton’s reject of the duality creates further conflict in his world as he inadvertently drives Aeril to become Ursalla’s pawn in her schemes to steal his powers, leading both his kingdom and the surface world to the brink of ruin, And it only saved thanks to the efforts of the outsiders that helped had him before, Sora Donald, and Goofy. In the end it was not King Triton who saved Atlantica from his archenemy but rather the Trinity Trio who allied themselves with Aerial’s Lover Prince Eric that struck the final blow to Ursual. Unlike King Triton these 3 Musketeers were able to recognize What was best for both Atlantica and Aerial. And only when the truth is laid before King Triton does he at last abandon the prejudice that was suffocating his heart and Allow his world reach to duality through the union of Land and Sea, the Union of Ariel and Eric.

We’ve seen the beauty that comes forth when a person or a world achieves Duality but what of the misery is brought about when someone fails to achieve duality? Pete is the game’s first example of what happens to someone when they refuse duality. Pete’s lack of a duality is represented by his inability to balance his past and future. Pete longs for the good old days when he was a simple Ship Captain sailing the seas in his steamboat with his first mate. He longs for the days when he and Mickey were still friends. But Pete will never admit that last part, he’s far too prideful so Pete ultimately rejects his past for the sake of his future. He tries to change the past by stealing his old Steam Boat and the cornerstone of light so that Maleficent can take over Disney Castle in the future but in doing so he comes into Conflict with his past self who is still mostly a good person. By trying to change his past Pete is effectively betraying it, rejecting duality and failing this second chance he has been given by the universe leading to his ultimate despair. Pete not only fails to change the past losing to both the Trinity Trio and His past self but is permanently cut off from the Timeless River, the Past is lost to him forever leaving him only with his miserable present. 

And A similar fate might have befallen Sora as well if he did not come to reach a duality of his own with his Other.

In order for Sora to become a complete being again he needs Roxas to return to him. The Nobody must return to the Sanctuary of the heart. However Roxas only returns to Sora reluctantly, The situation ultimately forced on him by the will of the Worlds in the form of Diz meaning Roxas’s acceptance of his fate was ultimately half hearted. And So a true Duality between Sora and Roxas was not achieved, their reunion ultimately Unstable. Roxas' emotions would constantly pop up over the events of KH2, his anger and memories over taking Sora’s from time to time making the kind hearted boy more aggressive and antagonistic than usual, as if Roxas was trying to take Sora over. Sora on the hand was no better in this relationship. Throughout the adventure he would intentionally or not reject Roxas’s existence, failing to notice the boy's presence within his own heart Sora would simply react with confusion every time Roxas name was brought up, dismissing the Organization's genuine attempts to reach out to Roxas as cruel mind games. Sora was given all the clues to Roxas’s existence yet made no effort to acknowledge him, always prioritizing his own existence over his Other. Ultimately this incomplete Duality  would reach a boiling point with Axel’s Death. Refusing to accept the fact that Axel would sacrifice himself for Sora’s sake and his Somebody’s continual denial of his existence, Roxas at last rebelled. Dragging Sora down into his own heart, the two would clash on top of Sora's Station of awakening. Duality failed, the two boys of the Sky were unable to accept one another so they would force each other to acknowledge them through the only thing they both understood, the Crossing of Keyblades. Roxas would unleash all his anger onto Sora, his strikes rapid and full of righteous fury, as if to share his own pain with Sora. Whereas Sora would rely on guard taking on all of Roxas blows rather than striking back showing at last a willingness to acknowledge Roxas and take on his pain. Then there was the trading of Oathkeeper and Oblivion throughout the fight, the keyblades remaining loyal to both boys as undeniable proof of their shared power and connection. Yet despite Sora making the first steps to understand his Nobody Roxas would continue to reject Sora. Roxas could only see Sora as the source of his suffering and thus could not comprehend why Sora was always chosen over himself, especially by his best friend. That is until he gazes upon Sora’s Station of Awakening one last time and sees why it has to be Sora. The stained glass window bares the faces of Sora’s closest friends showing that sora has kept them not only close to his chest but has made them the very pillars of his heart allowing him to be connected to them forever more even when the worlds themselves tear them apart. Sora accepted the pain of separation and thus allowed his heart and bonds to grow stronger whereas Roxas is desperate to avoid the pain of separation at all cost ultimately cutting himself off from his friends in hopes of avoiding the inevitable pain but all this does is hurt Roxas’s friends making his heart weaker, leading to his defeat. Roxas realizes that Sora possesses a Strength he lacks, a strength he can only achieve when he accepts the kindness of Sora’s heart and their connection. And so he does that by finally acknowledges Sora as a “Good Other” allowing the two of them to achieve closest thing they can to a true duality symbolized by the KeyBlade Two Becomes One which represents the bond between Sora and Roxas, Final Form a manifestation of the union of their powers, and Sora at last being open to the truth of Roxas’s existence when Riku tells Sora who Roxas is. The two have yet to achieve a true duality as Roxas has yet to become his own free person but at least now the Somebody and Nobody have at last embarked together on the path towards true duality.     

To finish off this exploration of duality we must discuss how this theme relates back to the conflict between Light and Darkness that defines the series. In KH 1 it was established that Light and Darkness are natural enemies, that their conflict is one not just of the heart but of reality itself. Yet it is only in KH2  where we see the consequences of this conflict. Light in KH represents Creation and Healing, after all it is the light that created the hearts, Kingdom Hearts itself being the original light that all hearts are born from. The iconic cure spells use Light to heal our heroes, and even the offensive light spells often involve the creation of a hard light construct. Then we have Darkness which represents corruption. The heartless are ravenous monsters that consume the hearts of all men yet they do not destroy the hearts rather they corrupt them transforming them into new heartless that will repeat the cycle. The same goes for the worlds that fall to darkness. They may at first appear to be destroyed by the darkness but that is merely a misconception rather they too are corrupted by the darkness used as the building blocks to create a new world in the form of “End of The World”, an abomination that mirrors the emblem heartless themselves but a living world nonetheless. Light and Darkness are not destroyers rather they are the key pieces of DNA that make up reality in KH, both needed for the sake of existence meaning that it is only when they clash that destruction is brought about. Duality between Light and Darkness is needed for the universe to remain stable yet the two refuse to coexist their very natures compelling them to fight like two twins that disagree on the nature of their birth. The conflict between light and darkness in KH is not a noble fight between good and evil but rather just another senseless conflict that is instigated by the selfish ambitions of men, after all the Emblem Heartless would not exist without the twisted experiments of Apprentice Xehanort. And with this truth unveiled KH2 reveals to Sora and the Player the third core element of the universe, one that like Light and darkness is Eternal. Nothingness Is what is left when light and Darkness clash, the end result of their failure to achieve duality. It is less prevalent than its two brothers but make no mistake Nothingness is just as powerful and Dangerous as light and darkness. Nothing represents destruction and rot most likely because it is not born from the heart like Light and darkness but rather is the decay that is left behind when the heart disappears. Is it rotten sickness that festers in all that are cast away to the Inbetween, tearing them apart bit by bit from the inside stripping them of everything until they too become Nothing. It is without a doubt the greatest threat to the heart and thus it is the responsibility of light and darkness to defeat this threat. Through Sora and Riku Light and Darkness put aside their differences and fight side by side. The two knights that once opposed each other now joined together in friendship once more with their limit, Eternal session being the ultimate representation of this duality as we see light and darkness work together  in tandem to create something truly Beautiful. This is why it must be Sora and Riku who defeat Xemnas for he is the ultimate Nobody. Not just representing the nothingness in terms of power but in ideals, Xemnas is an empty shell of man who rejects everything the heart stands for all while shallowly claiming to understand it. He manipulates people through empty words and instigates chaos and destruction for his own ends. He not only cares for nothing but is nothing. That is why in the final fight he is so desperate to turn Sora and Riku against each other, because it is only in times of conflict that he holds any real power. But of course Sora and Riku ignore Xemnas’s hollow lies and strike him down together for they know the truth, light and darkness are not meant to be enemies but rather brothers who represent the true duality of the heart.

[mansionreborn]

Such a beautiful room! Where is she?

Page 69 of "The Mansion" by Navita Serus Sirus and Genie Twilight

(What is this all about?)